To Heather Montgomery, jewelry can be made from just about anything.
“I try to bring them into identity and make them wearable so people can appreciate them,” she said, standing among pendants and bracelets created out of recycled paper and game board pieces at Saturday’s Gainesville Arts Market.
Tzong Moua, the event’s founder, said she first hosted the market at First Magnitude Brewing Company and later at Artwalk Gainesville. Over the summer, Moua moved her event to the South Main Art Media Hub, or SoMA Art Media Hub, a parking lot located at 601 S. Main St., where the market opened for its first event of the year Saturday.
Moua said she envisions a market shaped by the needs of its artists.
“It’s not going to be exclusive, just more of an open, democratic kind of vibe,” she said. “I talk to the vendors all the time and see where they want to go with it and what they want to do.”
The market is currently held every third Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., but Moua said she hopes to make it a weekly event.
For now, Montgomery said she looks forward to creating more upcycled jewelry and watching new artists find their place at the event.
“I love the energy of the market being here at SoMA,” she said. “I think it’s such a great up-and-coming area, and I really like that it is giving a voice to people who are just starting out.”
The SoMA district of downtown Gainesville has seen a revitalization of art and businesses in recent months. At the Arts Market, any vendor or up-and-coming artist can secure a spot to sell his or her work for $15.
“It’s a really good mix of established vendors and people who are just starting out,” Montgomery said. “It changes every time.”
SoMA Art Media Hub owner, Celino Dimitroff, said he is happy to host the event every month at the new location.
“Tzong bringing the Arts Market behind SoMA is really brilliant, because we are trying to bring the whole community together,” he said. “And this is the perfect way to do it.”
